A friend of mine asked me to post something about Ray Manzarek's passing because I'm the only music writer he knows. ("We are dying off at an alarming rate," I replied.) I didn't personally feel qualified to do so, on the basis that I'm not exactly what you'd call a big Doors fan. However, there was a lot more to Manzarek than trying to make Jim Morrison a bit easier to swallow. Producing the first four X albums, for one thing, for which I hope he is amply rewarded in the afterlife. And he kept finding new projects to get attached to with great enthusiasm and eagerness. He did a lot of "Piano Poems" with Michael McClure, which I remember seeing them perform on Dennis Miller's old talk show in the '90s. A little more to my taste is this collaboration he did with Darryl Read, not only a poet but an important precursory figure in British punk. Rest in peace Ray.